The Worst Day Ever
by The Broken Mask
Summary: Sodor's Engines Writing Challenge #10. The story of how Lewis' day went from bad to worse to the worst day he's ever had.


**Sodor's Engines Writing Challenge #10**

**Prompt:** Every engine has that one day. That one bad day where nothing goes right for them. That one day that was hell on earth for them. So, what happened eh?

**Restrictions:** There must be at least one OC and 3 events that happen. At least 2 other engines, canon or OC, must make an appearance. Word count must reach at least 1000.

**Word Count:** 2,165

**Characters Used:** Lewis, Beauregard ("Bo"), Hank, Matilda, Victor, Jewel (Mentioned)

Note: Victor is Canon and Bo and Hank belong to Saberius Prime. Others are my OCs.

* * *

The sun peaked over the top of Sodor's Roundhouse, the home of many of the American engines that had started a new life on Sodor. At this time of the morning, most of the engines were out and getting steamed up for the day ahead, with a few notable exceptions. Engines that had been out on late trains, engines who were ill, engines who were still half asleep, and one certain engine who had settled in a birth away from the big sibling groups and the more noisy engines who liked to jab at each other and give long goodbyes as if they wouldn't be seeing each other again in just a few hours.  
He was unusual himself, being Sodor's only cab-forward engine and among the strongest on the island, the latter being something he liked to joke good naturedly about with his rivals. Even as he slept, it was all he could think about, dreaming about his attempt at the Strongest Engine contest to compete for Sodor, only he won in his dream.  
Engines and crew came and left as the sun continued to rise in the sky, but still the unusual engine was left to slumber away peacefully. That was, of course, before two men openly sprinted across the open yard to his birth doors, opening them with such a clatter that the engine inside, and every other sleeping engine in the area, was awoken with a shock.  
"What? Where's the fire...?" The engine spluttered to life, although he was soon looking around the yard, noticing the lack of other engines around them and how bright everything was.  
"I'm so sorry, Lewis!" His driver spoke quickly as his fireman practically leapt up into his cab. "I managed to sleep through my alarm, that's why we're so late! He ended up coming to get me and we've already missed trains we should have taken out-"  
"What?! What time is it?" Lewis asked in shock.  
"Eleven thirty." His driver answered, quickly speaking up again before his engine could. "Bo will have taken the loads we missed."  
"Bo shouldn't be taking my trains!" Lewis protested. "I should be taking them! I've got to face him later, how on earth can I do that now?!"  
"Just the same as if you'd managed to take the trains this morning." Lewis' fireman interrupted flatly. "And we could get that mixed load from the mainland in time if you two would stop panicking."  
"Sorry, sorry." Lewis' driver replied, giving his engine one last apologetic wave before he too disappeared into Lewis' cab.  
Every minute that a fire was being built and he was gathering pressure was agony for Lewis, the big engine being physically unable to stay still and his crew were no different, running around like headless chickens just out of his sight line to try and get him ready to do what he could do. The second he could be considered ready, he was already flying out of the roundhouse and down the mainline towards Barrow. Not even his fireman spoke up to stop him this time.

The moment he did roll into Barrow, it was very clear to Lewis which train he should have been taking - it was the only one left in the yard and he had the worst pick of the trucks. Some were old, some were strange shapes and sizes, holding just about everything from military grade vehicles to giant concrete sculptures to trucks full of valuable stone for the castle's yearly repairs, and all of it had to be delivered urgently. That morning in fact.  
Lewis wasted no time in backing down onto the train, giving the trucks what he thought was a firm bump to show them he wasn't going to accept any misbehaviour from them, but yelling from the ground workers would show any sane and not tense engine that he was too hard. The trucks chattered irritably behind him, Lewis could hear them plotting and laughing at the late engine as the crew finished the preparations behind him, adding a few last minute trucks to his train, a mainland engine shunting behind him with it's own whistle.  
There was finally a lull behind him, making Lewis think that they were finally ready to go. The workers he could see began stepping away from the train after doing some last checks, giving each other thumbs ups and calling that it was all ready. The engine could even feel that his crew were ready in his cab.  
A whistle sounded behind them, so Lewis began to pull and when the trucks didn't want to come, he only pulled harder.  
"Wait! We're not ready!" The trucks wailed behind him, but Lewis only huffed in response.  
"Yes you are, now come along and we can get this over with." He growled lowly, giving a sudden yank to try and get them to cooperate.  
Suddenly, everything happened at once. Metal and wood shattered like thin glass into dust, brake pipes ripped open with hisses louder than a thousand angry snakes and there was the unmistakable clatter of all that precious, and late, cargo now falling to the floor as the trucks simply fell apart beneath them. Workers scattered all around them, those that could make it, and even the engine that had been shunting behind him rocketed back with a panicked whistle of it's own.  
"Oh god!" Lewis' driver exclaimed as both of his crew jumped down to try and help in the chaos, leaving Lewis to sit and watch them all clean up the mess he had caused, complete with bright blue lights some minutes later.

The sun was starting to approach the horizon when Lewis rolled into Knapford station, as frustrated as he was tired and towing a pitifully small train of just a few vehicles, not even military ones and even then they were what could be salvaged and certainly not in the pristine condition they were promised. Even as they approached, Lewis could hear what the Fat Controller was going to say to them. Both he and his crew were going to be in so much trouble and the silent journey back was tense as they were all thinking the same thing.  
However, they were not greeted by the Fat Controller when Lewis finally slunk into the platform, although the alternative wasn't much better. Beauregard was sat in the platform next to him, facing him as he rolled to a stop and some engines took the few trucks he did have, alone and understandably looking rather cross.  
"Where have you been? I've been waiting all afternoon." Bo questioned as Lewis came to a stop with a sigh.  
"Barrow, accident, that's all that was redeemable." Lewis grumbled flatly, leaving both of the big engines to fall silent.  
"We did wait for you." One of the tank engines piped up as they both rolled in around Lewis and Bo, and the voice made Lewis jump in surprise. Beside him were two tank engines he was familiar with, Hank and Matilda, and for reasons he had finally managed to put together, just being around the latter made him loose all chain of sensible thought.  
"Y-You didn't have to." Lewis stuttered out a reply, suddenly feeling very awake.  
"If you want to put it off because you've had a long day, then that's fine." Bo offered gently.  
"What? No, I'm not going to miss this opportunity to beat you." Lewis challenged with a grin.  
"Your choice." Bo verbally shrugged, backing out of the station and over to the yard where the challenge had been setup, just as it had been for the Greatest Show tryouts. An incline at the end of lines with trucks full of bricks ready to be coupled onto the challengers for them to pull up it. Both of the bigger engines were soon in place, and Matilda and Hank were ready to shunt for him and Bo respectively.  
"Ready?" Bo prompted after a moment of idleness.  
"R-Ready!" Lewis replied, setting himself to focus on the task at hand rather than the engine behind him, so when the whistle was blown for the challenge to start the engine was off like a rocket.  
He was soon building a hefty train of trucks as he pushed himself up and rolled back down that incline, but so was Bo and the engine was performing at a much steadier pace. Lewis' attention soon wandered from his own performance to how he was doing compared to his opponent, he had more trucks at that moment but he was already starting to feel the effects.  
"Careful Lewis!" Matilda called as the engine racked up more and more trucks at a rapid pace, even though she promptly got scolded by Hank. Lewis didn't listen to Hank scolding her, instead using her words as encouragement to keep going up and down that incline even though it was starting to wear on him.  
However, even Bo was starting to look over in concern as Lewis continued to push himself, although he didn't say anything as he too was starting to struggle. Lewis still had more and he wasn't going to give up, especially with Matilda right there.  
Unfortunately, Lewis' luck seemed to have run out again as he began to pull his newest train up the incline and a familiar hissing was heard, except this time it was coming from between him and his tender. He promptly came to a stop at the bottom of the incline when the train had pulled him back down, and now he was absolutely furious.  
"You've torn the brake pipe to your tender." His fireman told him in the same flat tone as he had used that morning, only a little more sarcastic this time. "Would be impressive, if not horribly inconvenient."  
"Just great." Lewis grumbled as he could feel his trucks being taken away.  
"I'll take you to the Steamworks right away. Victor will have you fixed up and you can sleep in your own birth tonight." Bo tried to soothe in a tone Lewis hadn't heard from the bigger engine before, but he was too frustrated to care.  
"If I can make it to my birth after this mess tonight, then I'll be a happy engine."

As unceremoniously as Lewis had arrived at Knapford earlier, he was brought in by Bo and the big engine left. The Steamworks was actually pretty quiet, which Lewis was glad of as it meant he got seen to quickly and peacefully.  
That was until Matilda rolled in, her face as expressive as ever and the only emotion on her face was worry. She stopped short, looking at him in silent questioning to which he flashed her a smile and she rolled over.  
"How are you feeling?" She asked gently.  
"Alright I suppose." Lewis replied. "Better now that you're here."  
"I-It is quiet in here." Matilda mused, looking away from Lewis and out into the surrounding area with just a flash of discomfort in her expression.  
"I'd rather have you here with me than anyone else in the world."  
"Really?" Matilda looked at him in mild disbelief.  
"Really."  
"Lewis, I'm flattered, but..."  
Lewis looked down at the tank engine as she trailed off, seeing that she looked shocked, uncomfortable and even a little frightened. It took a moment, but the message soon sunk in and Lewis could feel his boiler pressure rising again.  
"It's him, isn't it?" He growled lowly.  
"What?" Matilda looked shocked now, staring at him with eyes as wide as plates.  
"Hank."  
"No!"  
"It is."  
"He's a little brother to me!"  
"Bo then."  
"No! And he's got someone anyway."  
"Really?"  
"That black and grey engine, does the fast trains. Jewel I think."  
"Really?" Lewis pulled a face. Jewel's huge driving wheels and strangely streamlined shape made him look normal. "She's so weird looking. And so standoffish."  
"Lewis!" Matilda protested, perhaps louder than she should have.  
"Alright, one of her brothers then."  
"No! There's no one, no one at all!" Matilda got louder the more frustrated she got. "I'm too old for all that, we both know it."  
Lewis had been about to argue back, but a sharp cough from Victor brought him slamming back down to reality. Everyone was staring at them and he knew how word spread across the island.  
"Sorry Victor." Matilda had gone bright red out of embarrassment and used the opportunity to leave before she said anything else, or he said anything else to her.  
Victor fixed Lewis with a hard stare until the big engine backed down, almost physically shrinking into his frame.  
"You are staying here tonight my friend. You should stay quiet for the rest of the night, get some rest." The smaller engine told him firmly.  
"Yes Victor." Lewis sighed as Victor rolled back into the Steamworks to tend to something else, leaving him alone in his corner. "Worst day ever." He added to himself, closing his eyes for just a second and soon falling asleep.


End file.
